You can take Xanthe out much earlier than The Blood of Dawnwalker lets on. I’ll show you the shortcut, explain the boss fight, and help you make the decisions that come with serious consequences.
Blood of Dawnwalker is one of those games that doesn’t hand you everything on a silver platter. If you simply follow the main quest, you’ll dutifully sabotage Xanthe’s Court Activities, raise her rage, and patiently wait for the final boss fight. That takes time – and with the 30-day deadline, time is hardly something you have to spare. But you can actually track down and fight the dark boyar shortly after the prologue, with no quest requirements whatsoever. There is a catch, though.
The Regular Route to Xanthe
During a normal playthrough, you’re supposed to sabotage Xanthe’s Court Activities to raise her rage and eventually trigger her main quest. Xanthe has a total of 15 of these activities, including camps, transports, and excavations. Many of them cost three time segments each, and you’ll need to complete a good chunk of them before the game lets you progress. Especially during a playthrough where every day counts, this can eat up a significant portion of your time budget. Fortunately, you can bypass the entire process.
How to Find Xanthe Shortly After the Prologue
As soon as the open world becomes available after the prologue, you can head to the large cathedral in Svartrau at night. There are no prerequisites or hidden progression checks. Xanthe can be found there at night, performing a blood ritual at the altar with three guards.
Getting into the cathedral works differently depending on the time of day:
During the day, the main entrance is open, but Xanthe won’t be there. Instead, you can witness a blood baptism, start a quest involving Father Florin, or begin the questline for Mihai’s Legendary Sword (Guide) – which, by the way, you should absolutely do.
At night, however, the main gate is locked. Climb up the scaffolding on the cathedral instead. There’s an opening beneath the roof that lets you get inside. From there, you should already be able to hear Xanthe’s voice. Once you get close enough to the vampire, the fight starts automatically.
- Be careful: Just because you can reach Xanthe early doesn’t mean the fight will be easy. The boss doesn’t scale down to your level. You should be around Level 25 to 30 before attempting the fight, or you’re unlikely to stand much of a chance.
How the Xanthe Boss Fight Works
Whether you encounter Xanthe early in the cathedral or later through the main quest, the fight essentially plays out the same way. First, you should deal with the three guards accompanying Xanthe. The faster you take them out, the sooner you can focus entirely on the boyar herself.
Xanthe herself relies on four main attack patterns that you’ll need to recognize and counter. Her tentacle attacks come from different directions. Block them carefully, as several successful blocks in a row can stagger Xanthe and give you an opening to launch your own attacks.
Xanthe marks several areas on the ground that explode shortly afterward. Get out of these zones immediately, or you’ll take massive damage.
By far the most important mechanic is the blood orbs. They appear at certain health thresholds and must be destroyed immediately. Every orb you leave intact restores a significant portion of Xanthe’s lost health. If you ignore the orbs, the fight becomes practically impossible to win because Xanthe regenerates faster than you can deal damage.
During the later phase of the fight, Xanthe also gains an explosive storm attack that you’ll need to dodge.
First Decision: Drink Xanthe’s Blood or Kill Her?
Once you’ve defeated Xanthe, you’re faced with a choice – but there’s one crucial limitation. If you complete her main quest the regular way, Xanthe can negotiate with Coen after her defeat and offer him an alliance. If you fight her early in the cathedral, that option isn’t available. Your only choices are to kill her or drink her blood.
From a gameplay perspective, I consider drinking her blood by far the more attractive option. Doing so gives you access to the vampire ability Blood Surge, which causes regular enemies to explode and instead deals heavy damage to bosses. The ability costs three activation charges and is one of the most powerful supernatural tools in the game.
If you simply kill her, you won’t get the ability. However, you can also unlock Blood Surge with a vial of Xanthe’s blood that you can find later in Svartrau’s cathedral.
In practical terms: If you’re going to take Xanthe out early anyway, drink her blood. Simply killing her provides no gameplay advantage over draining her.
Second Decision: Invite Xanthe In or Leave Her Behind?
After drinking her blood, Xanthe ends up in Anachora, just like other defeated Vrakhiri – a kind of realm between worlds within Coen’s consciousness. There, you’ll face another decision: You can invite Xanthe in or leave her behind in Anachora.
This choice matters more than it might initially seem. Vrakhiri you invite in essentially continue to exist within Coen’s consciousness and can provide additional comments and reactions.
More importantly: During the later fight against Brencis in Anachora, invited Vrakhiri will fight on Coen’s side. Those you didn’t invite can instead appear on Brencis’ side and face you as enemies.
That leads to a clear recommendation: Drink Xanthe’s blood and then invite her in if you’re going for the early kill anyway. You’ll get Blood Surge while also preventing Xanthe’s spirit from standing in your way later.
What Do You Lose by Killing Xanthe Early?
If you follow the regular route, you’ll learn more about Xanthe and her daughter, and after the boss fight, you can negotiate an alliance with Xanthe and spare her life. This has noticeable consequences for the later stages of the game. I won’t spoil anything beyond that here.
What Happens to Xanthe’s Court Activities After Her Death?
If you’re worried that killing Xanthe early will lock you out of an entire section of the map, you can relax. Camps, transports, excavations, and other activities in Xanthe’s territory remain available even after her death. You simply no longer need them to raise Xanthe’s rage or draw her out. They still contain loot, experience points, skill progression, side quests, and sometimes important items. So killing Xanthe early isn’t a shortcut that wipes her entire region off the map.
More Guides & Articles on The Blood of Dawnwalker
- The Blood of Dawnwalker Walkthrough: Echoes of Silenced Bells – Quest Guide
- The Blood of Dawnwalker: Anca Romance – All Dialogue Choices for the Best Outcome
- The Blood of Dawnwalker: Should Coen or Anca Use the Font of Life?
- The Blood of Dawnwalker Guide: Vicho’s Quest Doesn’t End With “A Study in Crimson”
- No Mounts in The Blood of Dawnwalker: How to Get Around the World Faster Anyway
- The Blood of Dawnwalker Guide: Everything You Need to Know Before You Start
